Not Strong Enough
by Aphrodite-Venus-u.k
Summary: Cole and Isabel are not strong enough to stay away from each other.


Not Strong Enough

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Maggie Stiefvater. This story was inspired Apocalyptica's song "Not Strong Enough."

Time: Forever

Genre: Romance, Angst, and Drama

Rating: PG-13

Date Finished: May 27, 2012

Isabel buried her hands into her face. Cole St. Clair was annoying and got on her nerves so quickly. He was such a pain, but yet he proved her with such pleasure. She took her hands out of her face and started her car. The truth was she was not strong enough to stay away from him. All of this torture was worth it, because he was worth it. At least, she hoped that he was worth it.

She pulled out of her driveway and started toward Beck's house. She did not even know why she was doing this, why she kept going back to him. He was not worth her time, but, yet, she was drawn to him. He was like the flame that the moth was driven to and could not stay away.

Cole St. Clair was her flame.

She wanted to leave him, she wanted to stay. Her mind was in a state of confusion and chaos. She did not know what she wanted. She wanted Cole, but knew that she needed to stay away. He was her own brand of heron, her own personal high. She needed to get away from him and stay away. The big problem was that she was not strong enough to stay away.

She pulled up into the Beck's driveway, knowing that she should not be here. A small part of her hoped that Cole was not there, but the other part of her longed to see him. Ever since he had told Isabel that he was not going to sleep with her, this torn game in her mind had been occurring. She admired him, she despised him. She loved him, she hated him. It was just an endless cycle.

When he acted like a jerk, it was easy to hate him. Yet, she could not stay away. She kept checking her mobile to see if there was any new messages from him begging for forgiveness for what he had done. She had yet to receive any such message.

So, why was she here in front of Beck's house? She supposed she could use the excuse that she was looking for Sam and Grace. Isabel knew that they probably were not her, but it would be a pretty good excuse. She sighed. No, it was not a good excuse. It was kind of lame. She growled. Cole stripped her of her pride.

Isabel cursed herself for feeling like this. Cole St. Clair got into her heart and made her soul surrender. No member of the male gender had ever caused her to feel like this. It killed her to stay away. She knew that in her mind she should stay away, but her heart was telling her otherwise.

She climbed out of the car and walked up to the house. Her heart was heavy. She needed to stay away. The only problem was that she was not strong enough to stay away.

~***~  
Cole could not figure out what was wrong. He had done everything correct as far as he could tell. He stared at the mixture again. It should work. He did not know what the problem was. He went into the kitchen and splashed cold water on his face. He could not figure out what was wrong.

He knew what the biggest problem was. It was her, IsabelCulpeper. He could not get her out of his head. He slammed his fists into the counter. She needed to get out of his head. She was not worth it. He knew that was not the truth. It would kill him if he could not see her again.

He knew that he was the one to blame for the way things were between them. He could not bring himself to regret for saying no to her. He did it to protect her. She was worth more to him than other girls. No way would he treat her like the others.

No, she was not like the others. She was the only one who could make him feel this way. She brought him and his heart to their knees. Cole was bound to her in chains and he could not get away. He was not sure if he wanted to get away. He was not strong enough to stay away from her.

Cole's heart knew that it was right to be with Isabel, but his mind knew that it was wrong. He knew who was going to win and it was not going to be his mind. His heart was going to control his wishes and desires. He had never felt like this toward another girl. This love had changed him. He could not believe what this love had done to him. It was making him actually care about a girl's feelings.

He walked out of the kitchen and down the hall past the bathroom. Sam would not enter that room because of the tub. Cole was starting to understand Sam's fear. Isabel was Cole's tub. As he walked past it, he pulled the door. There was no sense in living in fear in the house.

He went to the entryway and saw Isabel's SUV pulled up into the drive. He watched as she parked, climbed out, and slammed the door shut. She stared at the house. Cole ducked into the living room. He did not want to let her know that he was watching her. He waited for what felt like forever before he heard her footsteps approach the house. She pushed the front door open without knocking.

"Hello?" Isabel called. She was walking toward the living room.

Cole felt like a magnet was drawing him to her. He tried to fight it, but was just not strong enough to. "Da," he said stepping out of the room.

Isabel turned and stared him down. Even though he look was tough, he could see that she was fighting to stay away. She cleared her throat. "Is Sam and Grace around?"

He shook his head and stepped forward. "No, it's me." He reached out to touch her.

She did not pull away and seemed to move closer. "Good," she whispered. "Cole, I think it is time we face the truth."

Cole's heartbeat picked up. He was unsure what her truth would be.

She leaned in to him. "We are not strong enough to stay away from each other."

Cole could not agree anymore. Rather than say it with words, he leaned in a little bit further and kissed her.


End file.
